This Time Around
by Special Agent Chibi
Summary: These Oneshots are made for the LJ community HurtComfort. All are centered around Aurikku, a.k.a AuronxRikku. No likie, no readie. If likie, please read! First Theme: Fear. Rikku Cliff Uhoh. All angst, all the time.


**_This Time Around_**  
_Chibi-Sorrow_

**Chapter One: Fear**

It's in the fear - that one thing that frightens you so much you lose control of all senses, thoughts, feelings, everything. Something so terrible, yet so unbelievable it may even stop you from moving, freezing your limbs from doing something to ease this fear. I can honestly say I've only felt this fear a few times in my life - or rather my existence - the two clearest memories being of the sacrifice of Lord Braska, as well as the demise of Jecht, and the death of my beloved parents who perished at the merciless power of Sin.

That is until this very moment…

It had been an accident; a complete and utter mishap that shouldn't have taken place, yet it did. She had merely slipped, tripping over what was assumed to be a hidden vat of ice underneath the pure white snow. She just… slipped down the side of the mountain, screaming along the entire way. That is what had gotten the groups attention, what had gotten mine. If she hadn't of screamed, we never would have known that the most scantly clad of our group was falling to her death.

The child - the youngest female of our strange group - clung to the side of the snowy death-trap known formally as Gagazet. I could see clearly, even with a lack of sight from my left eye, the tears streaming down her face, her eyes full of fear as she realized this was one situation she may not be able to escape from.

"Rikku, hold on!" I heard the cries from the boy, Tidus, as he desperately looked around, trying to come with a way to save the perilously hanging younger teen. His sea-blue eyes darted viciously around the surroundings, seeing nothing but snow, ice, and more snow.

"Rikku!" Yuna screamed, bending on her knees and reaching her staff out in hopes that her cousin could possibly grab a hold of it. "Rikku, please!"

Rikku shook her head vehemently, both hands clinging to the mountain side, slipping over frozen rain. "I can't, Yunie! I'm too scared! Please, someone help me!" She cried out, her tears mingling with the snow that landed on her cheeks, courtesy of the blizzard that took them by surprise.

"Rikku, you must try and pull yourself up! Do not let go of the mountain, do you hear me? I repeat, do not let go!" Lulu yelled over the noisy weather, her voice sounding angry, yet her eyes - I could see - showed desperation for the girl. I knew she cared about Rikku as much as Yuna - as if she were another little sister to protect.

"Ya, Rikku, keep it strong! Don't give up, ya!" Wakka yelled encouragingly, trying with Tidus to find a path down - as the girl had fallen quite aways away from us. His once despise for the girl had returned to care when he learned of her homes destruction.

Kimahri would have been included had he not been already scouting ahead of the group, attempting to search for an easier path up this death-trap.

As for myself, well… I am just standing here, watching the scene in what appears to be disinterest. I knew my facial expression stood forever passive, yet I also had my inner tormented thoughts, too.

This child, this young girl of only fifteen winters has so much of me in her it frightens me. She wants - no, let me rephrase that - she _needs_ to protect Yuna. She needs to save her. It is her way of living, probably the only thing that is keeping her little body going, keeping her from collapsing on the spot. True, she has great strength within her, even I cannot deny that, but a majority of her strength comes from the fact she is trying to save her cousin.

Ah, how she is so like myself… How I was before...

Yet… If she is like how I was then, will she become what I am now? I questioned this silently, my eyebrows screwing together in concentration. In her own foolishness, will she make the same sacrifice I did? I only shook my head as my thought process went over this idea repeatedly, over and over. She couldn't do so - it was unheard of! How could such an innocent child be sent to such a horrid fate?

No.

I refuse.

I absolutely refuse to allow that to happen. The girl will live - live like she is now, without the heavy burden entrapping her soul in a maze even I still cannot escape. She will be free to live her own life. She will not become what I have become.

She will not become what I most fear… she will not be as I am. She will not become unsent - one of the dead walking among the living.

I do not need more burden on my shoulders.

At that very moment, I heard a rather unsettling scream come from below, in the very same direction Tidus and the others were, trying to reach the young girl. My head whipped up, solitary dusk eye widening as I now saw Rikku hanging from a single hand. Sobbing reached my ears, most likely from the girl, possibly from even Yuna. The girl was down to her last limit, at the very brink of falling…

"I can't hold on anymore!" Rikku yelled, her eyes tightly closed as she still clung with that one hand, attempting to reach up once more, yet to no avail. I watched in horror, keeping the ever stoic face, as the young girl began slipping. Frozen tears stood against her stark white cheeks, showing how fearful she was of dying.

"Rikku!" Yuna screamed, tears slipping down her own frozen cheeks, reaching out to her cousin as Lulu held her back.

Lulu looked up at me, her eyes wide in shock as she realized I just continued to watch, taking no action in helping. That shock quickly changed to anger, her crimson eyes glaring in anger at me as she turned back to the situation at hand. "Rikku, hold on! Tidus and Wakka are on their way!"

"I can't!" She cried back, her grasp almost slipping once more.

"Rikku, just… d-don't let go! Wakka and I are coming for you!" Tidus yelled, holding onto a rocky ledge, covered in ice itself, Wakka not far behind. Tidus, suddenly realized that it seemed one more person was missing, looked upwards as Lulu had, his oceanic eyes glued on my own rustic gaze. He glared at me, shouting over the wind. "Auron, get your ass down here and help!"

I believe I must have looked at the boy with a shocked express, for he looked on smugly at me. That is, until we heard the last call from the girl.

"I'm sorry I was such a disappointment… Please, just save Yuna!" She screamed out tearfully, her grasp finally losing its hold, allowing her to plummet to the bottom of the mountain.

That is until I realized the dire situation, leaping from my spot above the others. Sliding down the hill in haste as I heard Rikku's death speech, I reached down to Lulu and Yuna's level. I took a leap from the ledge they sat at, falling past Tidus, past Wakka, and landing onto the snow of the slippery cliff that Rikku clung to. I quickly intervened Rikku's fall, grabbing her wrist tightly, laying against the top of the frozen cliff she had been clinging to. You see, while all in all I really can be quite an 'unemotional bunny of doom', to quote Tidus directly, I do care for these children.

This child, especially, despite my own actions…

The girl looked up in shock, her eyes still filled to the brim with tears. As soon as she realized I had a good hold of her, she let out a sob of relief, her hand grasping my own wrist tightly.

I stood up with ease, Rikku dangling from my hold as I looked at her skeptically. She just looked at me tiredly, tears still streaming down her cheek from her near-death experience. Shaking my head, I reached my free arm out, drawing her to me and holding her from beneath. "Hang on," I said gruffly, walking towards the wall and making my way up it, using a small foot path as well as the rocks that stuck out, using them as hand-holds.

I felt the girl cling tightly to my shoulders, burying her face in the crook of my neck as I heard her let out sobbing thank yous. I just shook my head, making my way back up to the others with ease. I tried to let the girl down, but she clung tightly to me, her arms now binding my neck in a vice-like grip. It took the prying of Yuna, Lulu, and Tidus to get her to let go of my and go into the awaiting arm's of her cousin - who sobbed with her as well as the two clung to each other.

It took another twenty minutes for our pilgrimage to move again, now sticking more tightly together thanks to previous circumstances. Rikku now was being guided by Lulu, the mage keeping an arm around the thief's shoulder's to not only to comfort her, but to make sure she would not pull another accidental stunt. Eventually we found a cave easily hidden from the snow and decided to camp there for the night.

Around midnight or so, when everyone was asleep - except for Tidus and me - he turned to look at me, an eyebrow raised.

"Auron, man, how the hell did you get there so fast. I didn't even see you move until you had Rikku!" Tidus questioned, waving his arms animatedly in the air. I simple shook my head, looking to the mouth of the cave in wonder.

"It's the fear…" I said simply, my thoughts wandering back to a certain Al-Bhed child.

* * *

_Well, I hope this is satisfactory. _

_Hehe, I made this for the Hurt/Comfort community in LJ as it says in the summary. As, I'm sure you can tell, Aurikku is my coupling for this._

_Yayyy_

_Anyways, this theme is fear. I hope you all enjoyed it!_

_Chibi_


End file.
